ATT Continues to Refuse to Unlock iPhone Xs

Since you purchased the device outright, did you buy it from AT&t? Or did you purchase it directly from Apple. If you bought it from Apple, it may never have been locked to AT&t. You can check in settings-general - about- scroll down where it says network provider lock. If it says no SIM restrictions, that means it's not locked. If it says AT&t that means it is still carrier locked to AT&t.

Since it has not been used in several months, it's very likely that AT&t does not have it registered anymore and submitting an unlock request. May kickback a response like "this is not an AT&t device", or " we cannot unlock this device as we did not sell it or activate it"

If it is indeed restricted to AT&t in settings, and if you are indeed getting those messages back when you try to submit an unlock request, you'll need someone at AT&t to override this manually. Manually. Means they manually have to search the IMEI. The quickest way to get this done is to submit a routine FCC complaint. It's not a serious as it may sound. The complaint will simply say you have an AT&t lock device that was purchased at full price and you can't unlock it 8 months after you've taken it out of service. The complaint is forwarded from the FCC back to AT&t upper management and someone will contact you. It may take them a few days to research the IMEI and verify that you paid for it in full. If you have a receipt for it somewhere, that might speed up the situation.

What message do you get when you try to unlock it?

I bought the phone from ATT so probably have an email from them acknowledging that; it’s been several years though. The phone does say that it is locked to ATT.

I’ve submitted maybe 4 total unlock requests so far. Each time - usually after several days - I receive a form email saying they need “more information” and to submit another unlock request.

Maybe the FCC route is the way to go with this one. When I was moving from ATT to Xfinity recently, I had to unlock all 4 of our family phones; 2 were instant, and 2 took quite some time (and a repeat unlock request). But this 5th phone (which hadn’t been used or tied to a wireless plan for a while) is the complicated one for sure. And I submitted the unlock request not as an ATT customer, since that one was no longer tied to my ATT plan.

Hi @applejacks222, we're here to help you in unlocking your iPhone Xs.

We need a few account details to proceed and investigate the same. Please authenticate your account by clicking the link. Please look out for a DM notification from us as we have initiated a DM.

Thank you visiting AT&T Community Forums!

Antony, Community Specialist

Hey there! Its AT&T here and we are here to address your concern.

Before we proceed further, we would like you to authenticate by clicking on the following link, after which we can look into this matter.

Antony, Community Specialist

Thank you, Antony, for reaching out. I haven’t seen a DM yet or a link to click on to authenticate, but I will stay tuned for both to show up.

🤦🏼‍♀️

They didn't add a link, and they didn't show you how to accept a direct message which may expire if you don't respond today. Refresh this page and look at the top right of the screen next to the bell. The message bubble is where you get a direct message. If it times out today, you'll have to start all over again tomorrow

Thanks so much everyone for all your help with this! I did submit the FCC complaint last night, and then this morning I received a phone call and email from the ATT Office of the President. That was fast! He took care of the unlock with just a click of a button he said. Incredible. Thank you again!